Dear Parents, Guardians, and Students,
Welcome to the 2016-2017
school year! I want to personally welcome our new families to Stone and
welcome back our returning eighth grade families. I am looking forward to a
wonderful year of learning and growing together. It is my hope that your family has enjoyed
your time together and is looking forward to the new school year.
Stone has been a busy
place this summer. We hosted a three week
Problem Based Learning Camp and Project Panther this week for almost 200 new seventh
graders. Last night over 250 students and parents attended our Project
Panther BBQ and information night.
Next week we will host a five day math boot camp. Thank you for sending
your students and participating in these wonderful summer opportunities.
Please
join us on Wednesday, August 31st
for “Panther Prep Night” at Stone from 4:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. On Panther Prep Night you will be given the
opportunity to buy P.E. uniforms, yearbooks, place money on your child’s
lunch account, join the PTSA, and pick up your child’s schedule. We hope you will take advantage of this
opportunity to get a head start on the beginning of the 2016-2017 school
year. If you are unable to attend
“Panther Prep Night,” your child may pick up his/her schedule on the first
day of school.
My goal is to keep you
informed by sending a Keep in Touch (KIT) every Friday. I will also post the KIT on the webpage
under Principal’s Page. Please
do not hesitate to contact me or any member of my administrative team should
you have any concerns or suggestions throughout the year. We look forward to
working with your student this year!
Sincerely,
Amielia Mitchell
Principal
BOOK YOUR SUMMER
READ FOR FUN...AND KEEP TRACK FOR A CHANCE TO WIN! Book Your Summer is a program
that builds a community of readers in FCPS. Book Your Summer will run from
June 27 - September 7, 2016. Participants in each school will qualify for a
chance to win school prizes: $50 in books of their choice or a laptop.
FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL:
Our first day of school is Tuesday, September 6th
and it is a regular
school day with classes scheduled from 7:30 a.m. to 2:15 p.m. The
warning bell rings at 7:20 a.m. Students who are driven to school
should be dropped off at Kiss & Ride off Sully Park Dr, avoiding the
faculty parking lot and the bus lanes. The area will be clearly marked for
you.
VIRTUAL OPENING
At Panther Prep Night, you will receive a virtual packet checklist and the
forms we require to begin the school year. Please complete these forms and
return them to the Panther Block teacher on the first day of school. The rest
of the items on the checklist are informational and/or optional and may be
found on our website and completed at your leisure. In keeping with our effort
to reduce the amount of paperwork we send home, it is very important to
include your email address on the emergency care form. Email is our primary
form of communication.
CLINIC INFORMATION
For students who will need to take medications during
school hours, the School Health Aide (SHA) will be in the Stone clinic daily.
PARENTS may bring medications to the clinic beginning September 6,
from 7:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. The appropriate medication form needs to be
completed and all medications must be in the original container. Forms for
medication, Epi-pens and inhalers are available at http://www.fcps.edu/forms.shtml.
SCHOOL SUPPLIES
On the first day of school, students are expected to come
prepared with a notebook and pencil. Our school supply list is on our web
site at http://www.fcps.edu/StoneMS/. Individual teachers
or teams may require additional supplies and students will be provided with
this information once school begins.
Each student will be supplied with a planner/assignment
book, which contains a card to track tardies and a Hallway Passport. The
planner must be carried at all times. The planner is used to encourage
organization, time management, and communication between home and school.
They will be in use beginning September 6, and parents should periodically
review the planner.
FAMILY LIFE EDUCATION
Students in grades 7-8
participate in Family Life Education (FLE) instruction through their health
and physical education course. Students receive instruction in a human growth
and development unit and an emotional and social health unit. For more
information about the FCPS Family Life Education program, please see the
detailed grade-level program descriptions at
http://www.fcps.edu/is/hpe/fle.shtml
In addition, grade
level-specific curriculum lessons are available for review in multiple
locations.
•
Online in FCPS
24-7 (Blackboard) Parent View - includes lessons and media titles that FCPS
has streaming rights for.
•
Any additional
media or book titles that are not streamed are available in the Stone
Library.
•
Parents/guardians
will need a SIS account to access FCPS 24-7. Account information is available
at your local school or online at http://www.fcps.edu/is/instructionaltechnology/247help/parents.shtml
There will be an opportunity for parents to preview the Family Life Education
media and lessons and to talk with school staff about the program. The
meeting will be held during Back to School Night on Thursday, September 15th
from 5:30 to 7:30 in the Stone Library. All program materials and media for
all grade levels will be available for your review at this time
STUDENT LOCKERS
Students’ lockers will be issued beginning Thursday,
September 8, 2016. Students will be issued a locker as soon as signed
emergency care cards, health information, and Student Rights &
Responsibilities forms are returned to the school. It is requested that students NOT BRING
BACKPACKS or HATS, to school until lockers are assigned. Once lockers are issued, students may begin
using backpacks to transport workbooks and materials to and from school.
BYOD
Students are encouraged to Bring Your Own Devices (BYOD) to school this year
for academic use in the classroom. When students sign the SR&R, they
agree to the FCPS Acceptable Use Policy which includes personal devices on
the FCPS network. Students are allowed to use personal devices for academic
purposes only. Devices can be confiscated if students are using their devices
for personal use (emails, texts, phone calls, and accessing social media).
DRESS CODE
Students are expected to
dress appropriately for the K-12 educational environment. Any clothing that interferes with or
disrupts the educational environment is not permitted.
Examples of prohibited clothing include but are not limited to pajamas, slippers,
sagging or low-cut pants, low-cut necklines that show cleavage, tube tops,
halter tops, backless blouses or blouses with only ties in the back,
spaghetti straps, clothing constructed of see-through material, hats, head
coverings unless required for religious or medical purposes or clothing which
promotes the unlawful use of weapons, drugs, alcohol, tobacco, or
gang-related activity. Girls’ shorts and skirts must be longer than their
fingertips when arms are extended at their sides. Students not complying with
this code will be asked to cover the non-complying clothing, change clothes,
or go home. Repeated infractions will result in disciplinary action.
CAFETERIA
The cost of breakfast this year is
($1.75), lunch ($3.00) and milk ($.60). Information about the free and
reduced lunch program will be directly mailed to parents. Free and Reduced
lunch applications are also available in the main office. Students who were
enrolled in the program during the 2015-2016 school year will continue to
receive this benefit for the first month of school. In order to remain in
this program, parents must complete and submit a new application by September
30, 2016 for the 2016-2017 school year.
If you are not eligible now but later you have a decrease
in income, become unemployed, or have a change in household or family size,
you may submit an application at that time. Your child’s counselor will be glad
to help assist you in this process. Applications take a minimum of ten days
to process, and you will be notified by letter from FCPS of the approval or
denial of the application.
|